Virginia, derived from the Latin word 'viridis,' meaning green, is a classic and elegant female given name. It gained popularity during the Victorian era due to its association with the American state of Virginia, which was named after England's Queen Elizabeth I, also known as the Virgin Queen. The name Virginia was famously used by Shakespeare in his play "The Two Gentlemen of Verona," where it is the given name of one of the main characters, Silvia. Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne this name, contributing to its enduring appeal and recognition.
The name Virginia had a notable rise in popularity from the early 1900s to the late 1920s, with peaks of 74 births in 1927 and 51 births in 1925. However, it gradually declined thereafter, dropping to single-digit figures by the mid-1960s. From the 1980s onwards, there were consistently fewer than ten births named Virginia each year, with a total of 2009 births recorded over the entire period.